A salutogenic perspective could be of practical relevance for the prevention of smoking amongst pregnant women

Objective: to use empirical data to assess the theoretical relevance of using a salutogenic, instead of a pathogenic, perspective to prevent smoking during pregnancy. Design: quantitative study, a questionnaire was completed during the first trimester of pregnancy and an interview was conducted after the baby was born. Setting: a geographically defined area in the south-east of Sweden. Participants: all 39S women in the study area who were pregnant during the study period 1994-1995. Findings: the women were categorised according to their smoking habits. A significant difference in the sense of coherence (SOC) score was shown between smoking and nonsmoking women in indicators of bad health. Women who relapsed to smoking showed a lower level of SOC, particularly in the manageability component, than others. The SOC score was higher in the whole study group than in other comparable, non-pregnant populations. Key conclusions and implications for practice: a salutogenic perspective could be used in antenatal care as a basis for encouraging pregnant women to stop smoking. This could enhance the SOC by making smoking more understandable for the woman, by discussing smoking as a way of coping, and by encouraging the woman's own capacity and motivation to stop smoking. Starting a dialogue about smoking from the woman's point of view could do this, with the midwife and the woman exploring together the woman's thoughts about the smoking problem. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.